Most young boys play with Toy Soldiers; some never stop! I'm proud to say that I am one that never has stopped. Toy Soldiers, painting the figures, history and miniature wargaming is what this site is all about.

Monday, June 19, 2017

When the Government asked the Elders of Edendale to
raise a mounted troop for the the upcoming Anglo-Zulu War, there was no hesitation. "We all
know the cruelty and the power of the Zulu King", they
told their people, "and if he should subdue the Queen's
soldiers and overrun this land he will wipe out all the
native people who have dwelt so long in safety under the
shadow of the Great White Queen. Shall we not gladly
obey her, when she calls for the services of her dark
children?"

Volunteers were quickly forthcoming. Within a few
days a fine body of some one hundred young men,
mounted, accoutred and uniformed at their Elders'
expense, complete with boots and spurs, gathered to
receive their Missionary's blessing at a solemn service in
the Edendale Church.

I have used HaT Miniatures Natal Native Horse to recreate the Edendale Contingent of the Natal Native Horse (NNH), the most effective and famous mounted unit of native troops raised.

Front and back of box including mounted and dismounted troops.

Three sprues come with the boxed set allowing you to make 9 mounted and 9 dismounted troops. As I am doing my forces for The Men Who Would be Kings these will be mounted Irregular Horse and will consist of 8 mounted figures. I used one figure from the HaT Frontier Light Horse box to be the officer.

"Apart from having
become loyal and reasonably good soldiers, who proved
themselves throughout the campaign and remained intact
and on service when other native units disintegrated and
melted away, they remained devout Christians, who rose
every morning before the first bugle-call to hold their
service and sing hymns .... And at night, however late
they were on duty, or however tired, they met again for
their evening worship."

This colour, donated by Mr Robert Topham, was presented by Major General
Sir Evelyn Wood, VC, KCB, Governor of Natal, in the name of the Queen 'to the
officers and troopers of the Edendale contingent of the Natal Native Horse' at
Edendale on 15 December 1881. 'The flag having been unfurled, was delivered by
the General to Sergeant Major Simeon Kambula, and Sergeants Simon and Enoch,
who knelt before His Excellency. The choir sang the National Anthem'
(The Natal Witness, Saturday 17 December 1881).
(Photograph by courtesy of the Killie Campbell Africana Library,
University of Natal, where the Colour now rests)

Friday, June 16, 2017

Allan Quatermain is an English-born professional big game hunter and occasional trader
in southern Africa, who supports colonial efforts to spread
civilization in the Dark Continent, though he also favours native
Africans having a say in their affairs. An outdoorsman who finds English
cities and climate unbearable, he prefers to spend most of his life in
Africa, where he grew up under the care of his widower father, a
Christian missionary.

Physically, he is small, wiry, and unattractive, with a beard and short
hair that sticks up. His one skill is his marksmanship, where he has no
equal. Quatermain is aware that as a professional hunter, he has helped
to destroy his beloved wild free places of Africa.

Quatermain becomes ensnared in the vengeance of of his arch-enemy Zikali, the dwarf wizard known as "The-thing-that-should-never-have-been-born" and
"Opener-of-Roads." Quatermain has also encountered Ayesha, "She Who Must be Obeyed".

Saturday, June 10, 2017

Born
to slave parents in 1838 in Crawford County Arkansas,
Bass Reeves would become the first black
U.S. Deputy Marshal west of the
Mississippi River and one of the greatest frontier heroes in United States history.

Though Reeves could not
read or write it did not curb his effectiveness in bringing back the
criminals. Before he headed out, he would have someone read him the
warrants and memorize which was which. When asked to produce the
warrant, he never failed to pick out the correct one.

An imposing figure, always riding on a large
white stallion, Reeves began to earn a reputation for his courage and success at
bringing in or killing many desperadoes of the territory. Always
wearing a large hat, Reeves was usually a spiffy dresser, with his
boots polished to a gleaming shine. He was known for his politeness and
courteous manner. However, when the purpose served him, he was a master
of disguises and often utilized aliases. Sometimes appearing as a cowboy,
farmer, gunslinger, or outlaw, himself, he always wore two Colt pistols,
butt forward for a fast draw. Ambidextrous, he rarely missed his
mark.

Another standout was Grant Johnson, who though largely forgotten today
was a respected lawman in Indian Territory for more than two decades.
The police work he performed with Reeves was quoted to me as being
legend. In the analogy of the Lone Ranger, Johnson could have been
Tonto.

Although Johnson was noted as being African American, he was also
noted for having strong American Indian features. He was what some refer
to as a “black Indian” or a mixed blood. He was in fact a Creek
freedman. Indian freedmen were either former black slaves of Indians or
descendants of Indian slaves of the Five Civilized Tribes (Cherokee,
Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek and Seminole). Johnson and other freedmen
worked as lawmen in Indian Territory, tribal policemen or deputy U.S.
marshals. Johnson clearly rates among the most important black lawmen in
the history of Indian Territory. Some even felt he was superior to Bass
Reeves.

About Me

I'm a retired Colonel of Infantry (Regulars by God!) who likes to play with toy soldiers. I've been married to the love of my life since 1986, I have 5 honorable sons (my geeks in training), 3 daughters-in-law, 3 dogs, and a gazillion miniatures.
Hobbies include . . . wait for it . . . Toy Soldiers, Reading,
Wargaming, Reading about Toy Soldiers, History, Reading about Wargaming, Gardening, Reading about History and Reading.